I am currently planning a 2-3 week car camping trip for a group of three 25 year olds (in good shape) and could really use some help figuring out what to do for our first time in Yosemite.
We will be arriving early Monday June 22 (score a site at Camp 4) and have anywhere from 3-6 days to spend in the park. I think for our first day there we will do the 4-mile to panorama hike, and then Upper Yosemite Falls on the second.
After that I would like to do a one night backpack:
- If possible I would like to start from the Cathedral Lakes trailhead, camp near the sunrise lakes, do Clouds Rest and end in the valley. We don't have permits and would have to rely on a walk up, but I'm not very sure how the trailhead quotas work. If there is no space available, (last few pages of the link). would walk up permits still be given?
- Is it too ambitious to complete Cathedral Lakes - Yosemite Valley in 2 days/1 night? It would be at the end of our trip and we might be pretty tired by then. If thats the case we could start at Sunrise Lakes (walk up permit permitting).
- Another option would be to hike to Young Lakes (reservations are still available). I was thinking about starting from Glen Aulin and exiting via Dog Lake. Not sure if this would be worth it due to our car, would it be better to hike out the way we went in? Also I saw that Tuolumne recently got a bunch of snow. Will snow/mud still be a factor when we visit? We will be traveling with a first time backpacker and I'm not sure how she would fair in those conditions.
- Any other suggestions for a one night backpack are welcome
Here is our entire itinerary if you're curious. This is the first time I have planned or taken part in a trip of this length. I have spent a lot of time researching but have been overwhelmed by all the things to do. Feel free to critique our plans (either in Yosemite or elsewhere.) Any help would be greatly appreciated.